Posted on 09/10/2013 9:18:49 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
Just a day ago, Barack Obama planned to lay out his case for taking military action against Syria in a prime-time address this evening. Instead, he’ll have to explain why he’s suddenly interested in the United Nations track, which his administration disparaged just last week as “hocus pocus” and “paralyzed.”
Smart power!
BREAKING: AP source says Obama agrees to UN discussion on Russia's proposal for Syria's chemical weapons.
— The Associated Press (@AP) September 10, 2013
Obama, Hollande & Cameron agreed to work through UN, in consultation with Russia & China, on Syria chem weapons, WH says, via @goldfarb.
— Philip Rucker (@PhilipRucker) September 10, 2013
Suddenly, it seems that the White House is more interested in diplomacy than shooting missiles at Damascus:
White House chief of staff Denis McDonough told Democratic members of the U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday that diplomacy, rather than military action, is the priority on Syria now, U.S. Representative Gene Green said.
“We’re going to wait and see how this offering” for securing Syria’s chemical-weapons arsenal plays out, Green told Reuters as he left a briefing by McDonough for House Democrats.
What does that mean for tonight’s speech? Inquiring minds want to know:
what draft is Obama's speech writing team for tonight on at this point?
— Sam Stein (@samsteinhp) September 10, 2013
Jennifer Rubin has an idea:
Maybe, the president should start his remarks by saying, “You can forget just about everything I’ve said up until now . . . ” But then again no one really believes much of anything he has to say these days.
It’s the Emily Litella strategy:
Smart power.
Update: More from the AP via HuffPo:
A White House official says President Barack Obama has agreed to discussions at the United Nations Security Council on a proposal from Russia to secure Syria’s chemical weapons stockpiles.
The official says Obama discussed the proposal Tuesday with French President Francois Hollande (frahn-SWAH’ oh-LAWND’) and British Prime Minister David Cameron. France’s foreign minister says France will float a resolution in the U.N. Security Council aimed at forcing Syria to make public its chemical weapons program, place it under international control and dismantle it.
Russia arranges it, France proposes it, and … we lead from behind. Brilliant, I tell you, brilliant.
Update: A couple of thoughts I shared on Twitter:
Old & busted: UN is hocus pocus & paralyzed. New hotness: We're gonna let the UN handle this. http://t.co/qFl0kly2rZ #smartpower
— Ed Morrissey (@EdMorrissey) September 10, 2013
Old & busted: This is a Munich moment! New hotness: Let's cut a deal and get out of this. http://t.co/c32QyiKVvX #smartpower
— Ed Morrissey (@EdMorrissey) September 10, 2013
So much for Munich moments. And hey, peace in our time, or something.
Update: More from Will Cain:
By forcing hacks to first defend the moral imperative of striking Syria, then trying to espouse a national security interest, then…. (1/2)
— Will Cain (@willcain) September 10, 2013
…by saying credibility requires us to punish Assad, then saying that this "unbelievable small" strike will send a message to others..(2/3)
— Will Cain (@willcain) September 10, 2013
…and ultimately backing out for the "Russian deal" that does none of the above – hacks are exposed. Thank you. (3/3)
— Will Cain (@willcain) September 10, 2013
Indeed.
Update: One or two commenters seem a little lost on my sarcasm over the Munich comments. I’ve argued all along that the Syria crisis is no Munich, and that the claims from Kerry and the Obama administration that it’s analogous to 1938 were historically ignorant and hyperbolic. However, if they really believed it, then walking away with a rather dubious and practically unenforceable agreement as a resolution is almost a perfect repetition of it. (Don’t forget that Hitler ally Benito Mussolini was the guarantor of the Munich agreement, paralleling Putin’s role here.) It’s just missing Neville Chamberlain’s umbrella.
How could this happen with all Obama’s prior experience at foreign affairs?
Rosann Rosannadanna would do a better job that the current clown crew!
I wonder how serious Obama ever was about attacking Syria, but at least I’m glad that for now it appears that’s not going to happen.
Of course the press will spin away and declare Obama as a genius and all that, but you knew that would happen no matter what.
no no no- that was supposed to be what Joe Biden brought to the ticket
Has Joe escaped from his handlers yet?
Great line. I wish I thought of it. I will use it around here.
Putin Assad and Dennis Rodman will be sharing this year’s Nobel
All are more deserving than Obama ever was.
This is not time to give up....write your congressman again telling him you have no interest in going to war over Syria, not now, not tomorrow. What El Dope is going to ask for is a resolution from the Congress that if HE does not agree with the pace of what happens regarding WMD in Syria, HE can launch.
Outstanding! With U.N. involvement they should have a meaningless agreement debated, created, voted on, and passed by 2017... implementation should take another 2-3 years! Problem solved! All hail the “brilliant one”... Barack Inane Obama!
If I could ... I would.
I am sure he got the message
But Rep. Elijah Cummings, a Maryland Democrat who represents one of the most Democratic and pro-Obama districts in the country, also reports deep resistance among his constituents.
In a Thursday interview with Michel Martin, host of NPR’s Tell Me More, Cummings said he's encountered near-universal opposition in his Baltimore-based district — a place that delivered landslide victories to Obama both in 2008 and in 2012.
“We are in a situation where, first of all, 95 — probably 97 percent — of everybody who calls my office and emails my office — and this, by the way, I come from a district which was about 85 percent for President Obama — [is] saying ‘no.’ And walking in here today to my office, I had a nurse ... at Johns Hopkins who's been there for 17 years, begged me not to vote for this bill.
Obama....you are boring...it's like watching Ground Hog Day
When's your next golf match??
Obama’s gotten so bad, the Kenyans are saying he was born in the US.
I have a bit of an unorthodox view of this Syrian business. I don’t want us bombing anybody there, at any time. Kicking this into the UN carphole for at least a decade is a good thing. I hope it rots there.
I've suggested the DVD movie IDIOCRACY instead
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